Federer and Sharapova knocked out in dramatic Wimbledon upset
There were high hopes for Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova as top seeds in this year’s Wimbledon tournament, but those hopes were dashed by a series of dramatic upsets forcing the two tennis greats out of the tournament early on Wednesday.
Federer was matched up against 116th-ranked Sergiy Stakhovsky in the second round of Wimbledon and suffered the loss, forcing him to his earliest exit in 10 years. Stakhovsky’s win proved to be one of the biggest upsets in tournament history as he outplayed Federer 7-6 (5), 6-7 (5), 5-7, 6-7 (5).
It should also be noted that the loss ends Federer’s impressive streak of 36 consecutive trips to the Grand Slam quarterfinals or better. It was a great run by one of the best tennis players in the game, and a second round loss is an unfortunate way to end such a streak.
Third-seeded Maria Sharapova did not fair better as she was beaten by Michelle Larcher de Brito, ranked 131st. Sharapova lost 3-6, 4-6 as Brito pulled off the great upset to knock Sharapova out of the second round. As surprised as the fans were, Brito said she was just as shocked by the results of the match.
”I can’t believe it,” Larcher de Brito said. ”I just tried to stay calm. I just played so well. I just hung in there. In the last couple of points or games I just gave it my all and went for it.”
Sharapova tumbled several times on the grass. Trailing 3-2 in the second set, her right leg gave way behind the baseline and she did the splits.
There is not much more for the two tennis greats to do than to sit back and reflect on the past few days, which also saw French Open winner Rafael Nadal knocked out early. As the action winds down it will be back to the training room as they, and every other hopeful, works towards making it all the way at the next Grand Slam.
